Visored Terror
by twistedfall1997
Summary: Alex just moved to Japan, yet it feels like she's lived there forever. It doesn't take long for her to get thrown into a crowd, but is it the right one?
1. Unexpected Stop

**Notes: If you see something in ' example' then its a thought...I don't like going back and forth from italics to normal! Thanks!**

"Where are we going Debbie?" Alex asked, twirling her side-bangs in her pointer finger as her cousin drove them around Japan.

"Oh...Nowhere really..." Debbie answered, voice shaky as if she was nervous. Alex looked over at her 51-year-old cousin with questioning hazel eyes. Shrugging off the unusual behavior, she looked back out the window of the SUV.

'We've only been living here for about a week, yet I feel like I know this place from somewhere. Its like I used to live here or something.' she thought, watching as they turned down a hill with trees on one side and an extremely nice looking apartment complex on the other. Debbie stopped the car after another turn and unbuckled, breathing heavily. "Do you know someone who lives here or something?"

"Uh yeah! They want to meet you so I said I'd bring you over!" Alex groaned and got out of the vehicle, slamming the door as she wiped the dog hair off her black coat and blue jeans. She followed her cousins up a tall flight of stairs and then entered apartment number 63. Inside was a dark, unfurnished living room, open to the kitchen and a small hallway. Alex froze up as she saw one person she had never wanted to see again. Her mom.

"Hi Alex." her mom said, looking and sounding like she had cried. There was a tall, blonde, happy looking man standing next to her. "I'd like you to meet Shinji. We've been waiting for you." The man smiled and waved, his school uniform looking extremely clean. Debbie pushed Alex forward, and the girl stumbled, confused, and slightly afraid. Debbie continued pushing her forward until she got around the island in the kitchen, where she was shoved to the ground by her mom.

"Nice to see you to Mother." she muttered, curling her fingers into fists. Shinji looked away from her at to the mom who had more tears flowing down her chubby face.

"Are you sure you want to do this? You still have another year before the medicine wears off." he said, giving Alex's mom a chance to reconsider her decision.

"N-no. I don't want this to be any harder than it already is." Alex was startled. What was going on around her? What were they talking about? What medicine?

"What are you guys talking ab-" she didn't have time to finish speaking as a girl with bright green hair appeared right in front of her face.

"Hold still!" the girl said cheerily as she ripped Alex's coat off her skin.

"Hey!" Alex jumped up and shoved the green-haired girl back, looking at her white tank top.

Alex looked at her mom and Debbie, who were both in tears as she found an arm around her neck forcing her to look up and star at Shinji. "Why ya so violent suddenly Alexandria?" he asked, a smile on his face as his oddly cut hair bounced. The green haired girl was in front of her, a knife in one hand that looked painful, and a yellowish liquid on the edge of the blade.

"What the hell are you doing?" Alex snarled, her brown hair falling forwards as she kicked Shinji with the sole of her foot, and spun around. Using his bent figure, she leapt up and over the island, sliding to a stop in the hallway. "Are you crazy? Mother what did you do?" Alex's voice snarled, watching both Shinji and the girl. Shinji put a hand on the girl's shoulder as Debbie took a step forward. Alex saw a door just to her right, and knew it was unlocked. "Stop or I'll run." she said, holding out a hand. Debbie froze, and looked down.

"...marriage..." was all Alex could hear from Debbie's soft voice. Shinji nodded, and the green-haired girl smiled slightly, still not looking very happy, but not mad either.

"What?"

"An arranged marriage Alexandria!" her mother suddenly snapped. "It was arranged the day you were born, and it was only a matter of time before they came." Alex was speechless.

"Mashrio-chan, you can give it to her." Shinji said and the green-haired girl nodded.

"Give me what?" there was a defensive tone to Alex's voice as she stepped back against the wall. At the same time, the door she had come in from, across the room from her, opened wide. A tall, heavy-set man with pink hair walked in with a man with blonde, long, curly hair.

"Hachi and Kensei! What a brilliant time for ya to show up!" Shinji said with a smile, motioning to the of the couch. Alex turned slightly to keep them in her view, but Mashiro was there in front of her, holding her arm and keeping an elbow in Alex's stomach, putting the knife to her upper arm.

"Wait!" she said, and Mashiro paused, looking out of large eyes. "What is that...That stuff on the blade?" Mashiro looked over at the two men who had walked in. The one with long hair and narrow eyes sighed.

"It's the antidote to what we gave you sixteen years ago to protect you from any hollows that came into the area where you were living." he said with flowing hands. Alex lifted half of her lip, her canine showing as she studied the knife that was against her skin.

"Oh." and then Alex was gone, down the hall and into the bedroom hidden behind a large bathroom. She quickly closed the door and sat herself against it. 'Who are these people? Arranged marriage? What do they mean THEY gave me some sort of medicine fifteen years ago? Impossible! They would've been like...My age!' she thought, mind racing as a thud hit the door.

Alex-chan! Open the door! I promise it won't hurt!" a voice she hadn't heard yet called. She took in a large amount of air before the door swung open, throwing her to the floor and scratching up her leg, making her bleed.

"Uncalled for!" she hissed while sitting up. Shinji was standing there with the pink haired man, who looked ashamed.

"Alexandria if you'd just take the antidote like a good girl then we wouldn't be having this conversation." Shinji said with an exhausted tone. Alex snorted.

"Don't call me Alexandria." she said, crossing her arms as the Hachi picked her up with one arm and forcefully carried her struggling body into the kitchen once more, where a girl with a side pigtail and brown eyes was sitting with her legs crossed on the island, holding the knife while Mashiro and Kensei were walking her mom and cousin out. "Put me down!" she hissed, and fond herself dropped on the ground, and unable to move her arms. "What the hell?"

"You're new to all of this huh?" The girl said, sliding off the kitchen area and on to the ground, setting Alex on her side. "It won't take long for you to adjust though." Alex snarled and swung her leg out, knocking the girl off-balance. "Hey! Uncalled for bitch!"  
"That's my line!" Alex snarled as two arms held her on her side. "Get off of me!"

"Alex please! if you struggle it will hurt!" Mashiro whined, looking like she was going to cry.

"She'll make the perfect match for that dickhead Grim!" the blonde girl said angrily, on her feet and looking down at the captured Alex. She began to put the knife to her skin, and Alex moved.

"I'll do it." Everyone got silent. "I'll cut myself, not one of you."

Shinji looked at the girl. "Hiyori, give her the knife." Alex found she could once again use her arms, and slowly put the cold metal against her skin. Everyone was watching her, watching what she was about to do. Taking in a short, quick breath, she pulled the blade across her skin, feeling the liquid ooze into it. To her surprise, it truly didn't hurt. Her mom and cousin were led back in as she fell to her side. The door she had wanted to run for opened, and a strong man wearing a grey t-shirt walked in. He had grey hair, but was obviously not old. The one next to him was tall, lean, and wearing a green jump suit. He had a star-shaped afro that looked odd, as well as extremely dark sunglasses. Alex's heart started beating as Mashiro looked into her eyes.

"You have never met Grim-san have you?" she asked. Alex could feel her heart racing, and her body grew tired. She just wanted to lay there and sleep. "You'll be in for a surprise!"

"Love, Rojuro, will one of ya two take her to the house?" Shinji asked, and the man with an afro nodded. "Thanks." Alex looked straight at her mom, an anger coursing through her veins at the sight.

"Where is she, mother?"

"Who?"

"C-Caitlyn." her voice cracked as she struggled for breath.

"She's at home Alexandria."

"T-train her w-well mother. W-when i get back I'm going to ki-ill her." Shinji looked at Love, and he quickly scooped up Alex and ran off out the door to his crew cab truck with Hiyori and Mashiro.


	2. Another Jerk

Alex was set in the middle seat of the blue dodge. Love ran around to the other side and got in, putting the key in the ignition as Mashiro and Hiyori got in. "Alex-chan I can't believe you're finally with us!" Mashiro exclaimed, clapping her hands as she sat next to the teenager. Alex ignored her, looking out the windshieled as they began to drive off, passing the door they had come out of. Shinji, the other weird people, and her own family were speaking with smiles. What were they talking about? Love turned a corner, heading down an old highway with lots of curves. It was almost as if they were going at a hyper speed, making everything blurry.

They drove quietly for about half an hour, only stopping because Mashiro had to use the restroom. Hiyori looked out the window, bored of being in a contained area. Her eyes caught onto something strange, and she jumped out the truck. "Hiyori!" Love called, but the girl had already gone, over on the other side of the parking lot. "I suppose you want out too, huh?" Alex turned her head, still overly exhausted, the antidote doing its job to knock her out to ease her of the pain. Love opened the door and helped her out, keeping her next to him as they traveled across the pavement. Hiyori was talking with a man about Love's height, laughing. Alex frowned, the man looking her up and down with a grin. "Hiyori we don't have time for this." Love said, grabbing the girl's shoulder. She tried to kick him, but he threw her in the air and towards the truck. Awestruck by the strength of the man, Alex didn't fight back when he led her to the truck."That was your..." a person ran by on the main road that caught Alex's attention.

She jumped, racing away from Love at a high speed, rushing up a hill after her friend. "Wait!" she screamed, but her friend looked at her with disgusts.

"Do I know you?" she asked, stopping to get in Alex's face.

"W..What?" Alex hadn't been expecting that. Her friend stared at her with angry eyes, the urge to fight written in them. The sound of a truck stopping behind her made Alex want to cry. This was her last chance. It was now or never. She would go with never. Mashiro wrapped her arms around her.

"I was so worried! Your just like Grim-san! Don't ever run off like that again Alex-chan!" she wailed, dragging her to the car. Alex could feel tears in her eyes as she watched what had been her life be covered up by Love's large body, then gone when he turned back around. She was set back in the middle of the truck, and buckled in so she couldn't jump around. She could feel her eyelids becoming heavier, but she wouldn't give in. Without realizing it, she had begun to fall sideways against Love, unable to hold her body up anymore. Love glanced at her through his sunglasses before gently shoving her upwards.

Nearly another hour later, they arrived at a split level house. Alex found a sudden burst of energy as memories flashed back to her. She started to cough, ribs and lungs aching for some odd reason as she remembered her first year of life. This was where her mother had kept her. Everyone got out of the truck, helping her stand on her weak legs as they looked at the building. It was olive green, surrounded by large trees and an ocean behind it. 'I would rather die than be here!' she thought, and found herself being carried once again into the building. Inside, Shinji was sitting on a yellow couch. He jumped to his feet and let Love place Alex there. It was just in time too, for she had literally finally fallen asleep as they entered the building.

"Thanks ya three." Shinji said with a small smile as he looked at the teen. "Her mom said it herself, it was only a matter o' time 'fore she lost control and severely hurt someone." Love walked off, and Mashiro followed. The only one still standing in the room with him was Hiyori.

"I don't understand what they saw in her. She seems weak to me." Shinji looked at his friend.

"Seems weak to ya? Did you not see her try and fight us off when we got her?" he asked. Hiyori grunted and walked off, Shinji following into the stairwell.

"Do you think Grim knows she here?" Hiyori asked her partner as they reached the top of the stairs, looking at a tightly closed door that was sure to be locked. Shinji ushered her forward to the study.

"Of course he knows she's here. All of us are back, and we aren't the best at hiding our reiatsu ya know." he said as they entered the room full of books. He glanced at a section, and noticed that about half the books were gone. 'Grim-san is doing something, but what?' He smiled as he plopped onto the chair. "Besides, it's not like he wouldn't find out when he goes to get his favorite book now would he?"

Alex woke up feeling normal, as if nothing had happened, yet her mind told her otherwise. It was dark, and it smelled dusty all around. She stood up, walking around the large room filled with yellow furniture. There was a kitchen, which she was quick to avoid, to her right, and a hall leading to stairs in front of her. She walked towards the stairs, fingers tracing the designs on the railing before setting a foot on the first step. "You're up already?" a voice she had never heard in her life before. Something about it drew her in though. She turned to see a boy maybe a little older than herself standing tall behind her, book in one hand. There was a stirring sound above her, and the guy looked disgusted.

"I didn't know I was on a schedule." she said, voice like it always had been, testy, and stubborn. The boy's nose crinkled. He had to be at least six foot, and was muscular. He had white spikey hair with three blue bangs falling on his forehead, narrow eyes that seemed to look right into her, and a devilish grin tha tmade Alex want to shrink down. This man in front of her was the image of war.

"And I didn't know I'd be dealing with a psychotic chick AND some shinigami that doesn't know how to do shit." he said, setting the book on an end table and walking forward. Alex froze up, not knowing what to do. He stopped next to her, and a cold chill passed over her. It was only a split second before her continued on his way up the stairs, ignoring her completely.

'Who is he calling psychotic?' she thought before turning to go up the stairs. In front of her was Hachi.

"I'd leave Grim alone for now. This isn't the best time to bug him." he said, blocking the entire stairway. Alex sighed and moved out of the way, going back to the couch and watching out the window for any sign of real life. Not this, weird, cranky dream.


	3. Lesson 1:Way of Binding 1

The dark sky slowly turned to dawn as the long night finally drew to an end. Alex got up and made her way to the kitchen, careful to watch everything going on around her. She was the only one up, but it felt like there was someone watching her. She opened the fridge, looking for something either spicy or sour. To her disappointment, the entire thing was empty. 'Who has a fridge with nothing in it?' she thought grumpily before opening the first cupboard. Empty. Determined to find something to soothe her growling stomach, she searched the entire room, only to find nothing, not even dishes. Annoyed, jsut jumped up onto the counter and sat there, watching the stairwell intently, wait for someone to wake up.

Alex didn't wait long though, as Mashiro came trotting down the stairs. The girl stopped and blinked her eyes. "Alex-chan! I didn't think you'd be up this early!" she said with a bubbly tone. Alex didn't respond. "How long have you been up?"

"Where's the food?" Mashiro had walked to the door and was grabbing a set of keys.

"I drive into town every morning an buy food for the day. I'll be back in about twenty minutes!" Before Alex could get out the door, it was slammed shut, the other female in a small car speeding off down the driveway. Groaning, the teen turned around and wandered, finding a bathroom, a large exercise area, and a beautiful backyard. She slid the door leading to the backyard open, stepping out onto the deck. The cold,damp air caught her by surprise, and she gave a little gasp as she stepped out. Waves crashing against the rocks at the edge of the lawn made a soft noise, while the rustling of the trees made whispers. Alex loved the outdoors, and sat on the railing, looking out at the ocean, instantaneously daydreaming about her earlier life. A sound behind her quickly stopped the memories though, and she looked, on guard. Hachi was standing there, looking half asleep as he yawned and closed the door.

"Good morning Alex-chan." Alex looked back out over the water, ignoring the greeting. "Did you sleep well?" She closed her eyes, trying to shove him out of her ears. Hachi didn't make any noises, but there was a crashing sound inside the house. A;ex slid onto the deck, opening her eyes slightly and moving around Hachi, accidentally bumping into him with her elbow. "Sorry Alex-chan, I should've moved." She continued to ignore him, going back inside and looking at the pissed off Hiyori throwing things at Shinji. Mashiro still wasn't back, and Love was sitting at the dining table reading a newspaper.

'These people get up at the same time!' Alex thought as she dodged a lamp. "What was that for?" she snarled and grabbed the pieces, throwing them back at the other girl.

"Stay out of this!" Hiyori snapped back, not looking away from Shinji.

"H-Hey lets just forget whatever it was I did an get on with our li..." a book smashed right into Shinji's face, sliding down and landing open on the floor. Alex craned her neck to read what was written on the cover. Way of Binding. There was a slamming sound at the top of the stairs, and everyone shut up except Shinji and Hiyori who were still throwing things at each other. Everyone watched as Grim walked slowly down the stairs, eyes closed, and looking as if he was sleep walking. It changed though, the second her got off the stairs. Love, who hadn't been watching, tensed up and walked next to a door when Grim opened his pale blue eyes, the intent to kill clearly written on his face. In a single movement, he held his index and middle fingers out straight towards the two blondes and spoke.

"Way of Binding #1, Sai." he said with a harsh tone. Shinji and Hiyori both collapsed to the ground, arms pinned behind their backs. They rolled around, acting like turtles, unable to get back up to their feet. The house fell silent, no one moving as the guy strode forward, picking up the book from the floor and slamming it shut. "Don't EVER fuck with my stuff again." Then he was gone.

Mashiro slid into the building while everyone watched Shinji and Hiyori struggled against whatever had just been put against them. The green haired girl set down two grocery bags and walked over to her friend, fell to the ground, and started rolling with them. "This is fun!"she laughed, smiling and giggling while Alex slid around them, taking a banana out of the bag and disappearing back outside. It had grown warmer, the sky more lit up. As she peeled the banana, the crashing started again. She sighed before taking a bite. Hachi joined her outside, sitting on the deck itself.

"Do you know what Grim-san just did there, Alex-chan?" he asked after a moment of silence. Alex didn't respond, so Hachi took it as a no. "That was a technique that shinigami use to prevent their enemies from attacking in large numbers. It forces the opponents arms behind their back and locks them there. However, it doesn't last very long, so the user has to be quick about their next move." he explained quickly. Alex finished eating her banana and tossed the peel over the side into the water.

"How can you do that?" she asked, a demanding tone. "I didn't even know that was possible to do. Grim...That guy said it was #1, does that mean there is more?" Hachi looked at her, his pink mustache moving with his mouth.

"Yeah, there's all sorts of binding spells, but you have to learn the basic ones before you can do more challenging ones. I can teach you if you want." he said, giving the girl an offer. As Alex started speaking, Shinji came busting through the door.

"Hachi! The shinigami's here to train. Time for our barrier!" His eyes shifted over to Alex. "Your coming with me." he moved quicker than she could see, grabbing her arm and running inside, then down a set of hidden stairs.  
The area below the house was amazing. The ground was all sand and dirt, the ceiling a rolling sky of blue with puffy clouds. There were random spurts of large rocks, piking up into the sky. An orange-haired boy was standing in a black uniform and a large sword in his hand. "Alex, this is Kurosaki Ichigo. He is a Visored in training." The boy didn't look very emotional, but that didn't bug Alex at all. She nodded, and Ichigo stayed still. "Ya going to learn more about what ya are here and now. As soon as HIYORI gets down here." On command, Hiyori came flying down the stairs, kicking Shinji in the side, sending him flying sideways. Hiyori looked at Alex before jumping over her and landing lightly, holding a sword as well. Ichigo moved his hands, pulling one across his face, revealing a white and red mask. Shinji got up and stumbled back to Alex's side. "This is what a Visored is."


	4. Alex vs Kensei?

There was a mind-blowing force that slammed against Alex as Shinji grinned ear to ear. She held her arms up to protect her face, watching through a small space between them. Ichigo blocked one blow from Hiyori, but her second one threw him backwards through the air. His body slammed into a rocky pillar. When the dust cleared, he had lost his "special" mask. "Cool isn't it Alex-chan?" Mashiro asked, bouncing up next to the girl who couldn't take her eyes off the sight. Sure, she had fought before. She was a black belt in Tai-Kwon-Do but she had never seen something like this. Hiyori was ruthless, not wasting a minutes time to attack the teen in front of her, lashing out with the intent to kill. TO Alex, it seemed like a miracle that Ichigo didn't get hit.

"Yeah, it is." she murmured, turning her head to continue watching. The force hit her multiple times, but never injured her. It was an amazing feeling. Mashiro spoke again, but her voice was toned out by the clashing of the two swords. Alex leaned forward, cocking her head to the side without realizing it. The green haired girl froze after a few sentences with no response.

"Alex-chan? Are you even listening?" she asked, sliding infront of her. Alex put a hand on her shoulder and shoved her aside with a force that seemed unreal. Mashiro rolled across the ground and stopped about twenty feet away by Kensei's feet. The man looked angry, quickly turning of Alex.

"What do you think your doing? You don't have the right to shove us around!" he yelled. His voice got the attention of Lisa, who was sitting nearby reading a manga. She got up, quick to jump between the newest Visored and her comrade. "Get out of my way!" Lisa managed to hold him back just long enough before Love, Shinji, and Hachi caught on. Alex was looking at her hands, shaking. How could she have done such a thing? How was it even physically possible? But then again, how was half the things she'd already seen today possible? Hachi stood in front of her, blocking her view of everything as she looked up. Though her sight was blocked, her hearing wasn't. "She shoved Mashiro! Mashiro didn't do anything!" Alex swallowed air, looking over her shoulder to see that Hiyori was making her way over in leaps, leaving Ichigo on his back against a pillar.

"Kensei calm down!" Mashiro's voice chirped in, sounding just as peppy as before.  
"Calm down? How am I supposed to calm down?"

"Now now she doesn't know what she did!" Hachi contorted, holding up both his hands. "After all, she only JUST got the antidote, I'm surprised she can even do that!" Alex tuned in more, peeking around Hachi's large body.

"It's true Kensei." Shinji said, cutting in as Kensei began to roar out in an enraged tone once more. 'Its weird how quick she got her abilities though...' Kensei watched, and when Shinji blinked his eyes, he lept up, surpassing even Hachi's height.

"Kensei!" Mashiro and Lisa called, reaching to grab his ankles, but failing. Alex spun on her heels, running as fast as she could across the sandy ground. She stopped when she reached a wall, and looked behind her, realising she had only run a second or two, yet had made it far enough to not be able to see the others.

"What is wrong with me?" she said, looking at her hands again before feeling someone near her. She turned her hazel eyes to the sky, and saw the grey-white-haired man coming down above her with a terrifying look on his face. Alex barely had time to roll out of the way as he crashed to the ground, sending up a large cloud of dust. She raced away, turning around and seeing that he was right on her tail. "Stop chasing me damn it!" she yelled, running just a bit faster. Kensei kept an even pace. Alex jumped up as high as she could, and landed on a pillar. Looking around, she noticed that Kensei had stopped at the bottom on the pillar and was looking down as if in shame. 'What? Why did he stop? I didn't attack him, and he could have easily caught me and killed me.' Kensei mouthed something as he suddenly fell, a blur passing him. His muscular form pushed its way back up to his feet before disappearing. At the same time, an arm wrapped around Alex's neck. She instantly began to twist and kick, trying ot get away from the person behind her. "Get off of me you shit head!" she said, lacking air for speaking.

"Is that the best you've got, Alexandria?" a cold, venomous, yet soothing tone said smoothly. Alex froze, feeling her muscles tense up as she was carried by her neck and head to the other Visored. Her body was thrown to the ground, scratching her arm slightly. "Someone should train her." Grim muttered, hands in his pockets as his icy white hair blew in the sudden wind. Shinji sighed as Hiyori jumped up.

"On it!" As Hiyori pulled out her sword, a hand touched her.

"Not yet. Alex-chan needs some teaching BEFORE you get a hold of her." Love said, voice quiet and calm. Alex, thankful although it didn't show, relaxed a bit, running a hand through her brown hair before looking over her shoulder. Ichigo was gone. At least, out of her view. She stood there, watching, the wind blowing sand around her, but none of it actually touching her. "Are you coming?" Love's voice asked, sounding distant. Alex turned to see him halfway up the stairs leading back into the house.

"Yeah." She ran up next to him, staying at his side until they got in. Mashiro was sitting on the island, swinging her legs back and forth. Her green hair sparkled in the dim light of the building. On the couch, Shinji sat with Hiyori, and Hachi had perched himself on a group of pillows across from them. Kensei was drinking water from the faucet, and Lisa was pulling styrofoam boxes out of the fridge. Grim was leaning against the wall, arms crossed and eyes closed, a sword on his hip. Alex felt her hands twitch, her nervousness trying to come out. She was quick to shove it back inside, keeping her frown on as Lisa handed her a box. "Thanks." she said, walking out to the deck once again. It felt right to her, that she be outside alone. She had always been alone her entire fifteen years of life, yet there was always the feeling that someone was watching. The watching part was true now, she realized as she took a bite of the cold rice. These people had been watching her since she had been a baby. These people, would be the start of a new life.


	5. Night Time Threat

The empty Styrofoam box sat on the deck next to Alex as she watched the night sky. The stars were twinkling brightly, making just enough light for her to see. The moon was full, and you could see every crater in it. The girl had brought her knees up to her chest, resting her chin on them as she rocked back and forth. It was a chilly night, and sure to be a long one too.

Mashiro slid the door open, looking around outside for her new comrade. "Shinji-san! I can't find her!" she called back into the house. Alex turned her head, slightly annoyed that she was so easily unseen. Shinji was immediately at the door, pushing Mashiro back. His wide eyes slowly drew into slits.

"She's right here ya idiot." he said, pointing down to the ground. Mashiro laughed, saying how stupid she was and skipping back to the kitchen. "Sorry 'bout that. Just need ya garbage is all." Shinj said, crouching down to pick up the white box before leaving Alex alone once again. She couldn't say she didn't like it. After all, her entire life she had been looking up to the day she could leave her mother's grip. It was almost like a dream come true, only this wasn't how she wanted to spend her new-found free time. This wasn't close.

Sighing, she layed backwards, using her hands as a pillow. Her legs were crossed, right leg over left, making her blue jeans slid up slightly. The feel of the cold ocean breeze against her skin relaxed Alex. It was a feeling she rarely got to feel, and now she would live right next to it. She closed her hazel eyes, letting herself become drowsy and nod off. A smile played with her lips, making her look at peace on the outside, even as memories of her childhood raced through her mind. She layed there for nearly an hour, just daydreaming, allowing her body to rest. The door slid open, just enough for someone to slid out sideways. Alex opened her eyes, instantly losing the half smile, and sat up, looking at whoever had walked in. " I didn't think you would be out here at a time like this." Grim's voice said, seeming almost tired. Alex nodded, looking at him.

"I didn't think anybody else would want to be out here at a time like this." she contorted, before snapping her head as a large wave crashed over the tops of the rocks. 'What a sight.' Grim shuffled gracefully over to the wooden furniture, sitting himself on a lounge chair. "Your staying?" Alex asked, prepared to leave quickly. She didn't like people being around her, or her being around people.

"Yeah, I do believe this is my house too you know." Grim said, eyes closed and leaning back stresslessly. Alex pushed herself up. "No." She froze. "Stay out here. I won't be here for long. I just need to..." the teen trailed off, his pale blue eyes opening, and showing a slight pain. THe brunette couldn't leave him alone. It wasn't the right thing to do, even if she didn't have any reason to do such a thing.

"Fine." she muttered, sitting back down. "Just don't stay to long." The two sat in silence. Grim watched how Alex reacted to the movement of the sea. It didn't take him long to see that she loved the ocean, loves its color, its waves, its soothing, its threatening currents, even the sound and smell. It was as if she moved absentmindedly to the water. He watched, unable to take his eyes off of her. THe one thing he knew other than her name, was now that she loved oceans. And he was going to marry her in about a year. She turned around, opening her mouth to speak, but he beat her to it.

"What do you think of the ocean Alexandria?" he asked, using her full name. Grim caught the slight wrinkling of her nose at her name.

"Don't call me that."

"Why? It is your name isn't it?" he asked, his family grin appearing on his face. Alex propped herself up against the railing while she spoke.

"Yeah, but...Never mind." Grim narrowed his eyes as she looked out again at the water, a distance on her face that wasn't there before. "I think, personally, that she ocean is amazing." Grim closed his eyes, feeling the tired burn. "I mean, yeah it is deadly, its aggressive, not to mention not the cleanest thing, but it has so many positive things to it. Its a healer, for one, calming, beautiful, even contagious." The end struck Grim weird.

"Contagious?"

"Yeah, it just sticks to a person once they see it. Then they just want to keep coming back to it." The boy nodded, seeing a slightly bigger picture of his future wife now. Alexandria liked oceans, and saw them as more good than evil.

"Oh... I see." his words slipped away into the sudden gust of wind that slammed against them. Or at least, a human would've seen it as wind. Grim lept to his feet, grabbing Alex's shoulder and throwing her behind him, backing her up to the door. "Get inside." Alex didn't move, but was looking into the night sky at what Grim was seeing, terror plain on her face. "Now Alex!" The girl blinked a few times before listening, and bolting indoors, speeding up the stairs to Shinji, Hiyori, and the others. Grim looked behind him to double check that she was gone before looking back at the creature before him. This was no ordinary hollow. No. This was an Arrancar. It wasn't the strongest, but it was still more than Alex could possibly handle, and probably half of those dimwitted captains up in Soul Society.

Without a word, he jumped into action, pulling the sword from his hip, slicing across the air and hitting the creature right across its white mask. It roared in pain, jumping down to Earth as it "died." Grim made his way silently back to the deck, watching the creature slowly disappear. Right before it had completely dissolved though, it created another one of itself. 'What? Impossible!' he thought, quickly raising his hand and throwing the basic binding spell he knew. The arrancar continued to laugh, and broke free of the prison.

"It will take more than that to capture me boy!" he said before jumping up onto the roof. Grim watched as it jumped once more, leaving the property and disappearing into the night sky.


	6. First Fight

Warm sunlight filtered through the tree leaves, sparkling on the deck. 'I should be out there right now not in here reading this damn book.' Alex thought, holding a small blue book about something called reiatsu. It made absolutely no sense to her. Mashiro skipped over to her.  
"Alex-chan are you going to come downstairs when Ichigo gets here?" she asked, in Alex's face. Alex pushed her backwards. She had spent nearly a week here now, and this girl just didn't learn.

"Yeah, I don't have much else to do." Mashiro jumped up and clapped her hands before rushing out the door and disappearing in the small red car once more. 'Alone again!' Alex sighed, smiling to herself as she leaned her head against the back of the couch.  
"ALEX!" Shinji screamed, making the girl cringe. She looked up at the high ceiling.  
"WHAT"  
"GET UP HERE! NOW!" Alex groaned, slamming the book down on the coffee table and stomping up the stairs. This was not the way to start a new day.

At the top of the stairs, Grim was standing in the open doorway, eyes landing on her before looking down the hall. "I think Shinji wants you." he said sarcastically. Alex shot him a deadly glare before continuing on her way to Shinji's room. She kicked the door open, looking in with fiery eyes.  
"What the hell do you want?" she snarled, looking at the blonde man who was sitting on his window sill. Shinji looked at her and frowned.  
"What is that?" he asked, looking motioning to the bed. Alex looked at the bed. There was a giant snake on it that looked lie it was about to devour her.  
"I'd say that's one big snake." she said, turning her head as she spoke.  
"Yeah get it out of here now." Alex locked eyes with the man who had brought her here.  
"Excuse me?" Shnji stared right back at her.  
"Ya heard me loud and clear Alex. Get the snake out of my room."  
Alex rubbed the tip of her tongue on her canines.  
"Why should I do it? There isn't anything in it for me!"  
"Ya put the snake there now ya getting it out!" Alex looked at him indifferently. Neither person made a move to get the snake, but both watched it as it began to constrict one of his pillows.  
"MY PILLOW!" Shinji cried, pointing at the large red pillow. There were tears in his eyes. Alex slapped him across the face.

"Get a hold of yourself Shinji!" she snapped, the doorway now full of the other Visored. "Which one of you bastards put this snake in here?"Everyone stared back at her. Kensei spoke.  
"Well I was gone all night. It was my turn to watch for the arrancar." Alex looked at the white hared man before moving her eyes to the short blonde girl she had come to actually like.  
"Don't look at me. I was with Kensei." Hiyori said, rolling her eyes. Mashiro was still gone, but Alex ruled her out. There was no way that chick could do such a thing. She was afraid of snakes anyways.  
"Love, what's your alibi?" Love looked at the newest Visored through his dark sunglasses.  
"I don't have one. But I did see Grim-san wandering around last night." he said, looking over his shoulder and down the hall. Alex felt her muscles tighten as she shoved through the crowd, storming down the hall. This wasn't her mess to fix, but it was going to be in a second.

"GRIM!" she opened the door, looking at the teen sitting on his bed, watching the sky. There was a distance in his eyes for a moment before he looked at Alex. "Did you put that snake in Shinji's room?" Grim didn't answer. Just, looked back outside. "Answer me!"  
"Maybe maybe not." he said, getting up and walking just a few inches from Alex. He towered over her,but Alex held her ground, not afraid of this guy. "Why does it matter to you princess?" Alex grabbed Grim's t-shirt, pulling his face down to her level.  
"Don't you ever call me that again!" she pushed him backwards, sending him against the wall. The group had crowded around the new doorway, never having seen the inside of Grim's room. Grim licked hips lips, feeling where his teeth had bitten into them. He took a step from the wall.

"Whatever you say, princess." Alex snapped. She ran forward, using her incredible speed to take him out the window, both of their bodies falling quickly to the ground. Grim flipped the around so that Alex was his landing cushion. "Sorry princess." alex had her arms pinned to the ground, but her feet were free to move. She brought her knees up, flinging him over her head and forcing him to roll under the deck. 'She's gotten better since Kensei went after her.' Grim thought, looking up at the girl through the cracks in the deck. She was looking down, but not in the right spot. Grim came crashing through the deck, knocking Alex off balance and sending her to her knees. "Way of Binding #1 Sai!" he said, quickly binding the girl with her arms behind her back.

"Damn it Grim!" she growled, struggling against the invisible was still upstairs, attention returned to the snake. Grim to his chance. "Let me go!"

"Why princess? So you can continuing attacking me? I'm good." he walked towards her, kneeling down and looking at her face. He reached out, fingers moving towards her face. Alex's eyes grew twice their size, quivering in the middle. Grim paused. "I'm not going to hurt you princess." He continued moving his fingers towards her face then, her eyes switching from fear to anger then back again. His finger tips touched her temple, making her shake brushed back her bangs, his grin on his face. "I don't like it when a girl has her hair up, but not all of it. Its either up or down princess." Grim stood up, releasing the binding as Alex stopped fighting against it. She sat up, looking at the broken deck, not all there. Grim stood with his back to her, but head looking over his shoulders. "You coming in or staying out?" ALex didn't move, so Grim shrugged and went back inside, coming out a moment later with the large snake wrapped around his neck.


	7. Fallen Friend

Everyone, now calmed down from the snake incident, made their way downstairs to the unusual training room. Alex stood, hands on her hips, looking out over the area. This was her training day too, if she remembered right. Shinji came walking down the stairs with Ichigo next to him, talking about how they would be having Bar-b-Que for dinner and he was welcome to stay. Alex ignored the, and wandered off, taking a stroll. Her mind was wandering, but only around one subject. Visored.

She looked up at the giant pillar before her, scanning it over. Near the top, a there was a ledge probably about the right size for two people, at most, to sit on. 'That looks just fine.' she thought before jumping up, grabbing onto the edge of it with her finger tips. She pushed herself up enough to swing her legs onto it, and rolled over, sprawling out on her back. 'Much better.' With her hands acting as a pillow, she watched the artificial sky roll over, turning from blue to a devilish grey and threatening to rain. 'Not better.' She sat up and looked down. Ichigo and Hiyori were fighting once again to the right, but the others were taking cover under the large entryway to the house. 'Bastards!' she thought, standing up. She backed herself up against the sandy pillar, pushing herself as hard as she could against it as the rain began to pour. In a matter of seconds, she was soaked.

The sound of metal clashing against metal began to fade away as the sound of water splashing against the surroundings overtook Alex's mind. She closed her eyes, relaxing a bit as she got used to her wet clothes. They felt heavy, and had made themselves skin tight. Alex didn't realize it, but her body was getting cold. She slid down, landing with a splat on the sand once more. Now she could feel it. There were goosebumps on her arms, and her body was shaking. "Are you kidding me?" she asked, voice high pitched for her. "I just can't get a break!" She smacked her head against the wall behind her, cracking it without realizing it. 'I better get back to the hosue and get some new clothes...' she thought, placing a hand on the pillar. As she leaned against the wall for extra support while getting up, it cracked further, then broke. Alex screamed, it was like she was drowning. She watched, unable to do anything as she and the top half of the pillar, began to fall down into darkness.

Ichigo and Hiyori came running into the house, both breathing heavy and soaking wet. The other Visored were lounging in the living room, reading and stuffing their faces. Grim was leaning against the wall again, looking at them blankly. his eyes looked angered. "What the hell is your problem?" Hiyori asked, not adding her famous ending. Grim blinked and then stepped away from the wall. Ichigo looked around, then snatched a piece of cheese from Love's plate.  
"Aren't you guys missing someone?" he asked, mouth full. Love wanted to slap him, but knew it wasn't the right thing to do. Shinji blinked blindly, then looked at all of his comrades.  
"Yeah...Where's Alex? Anyone of ya know?" he asked, looking around. Everybody muttered and shook their heads. Grim looked at the open stairway. "Great...She stayed by herself in the trainin' room." It was unusual, for the Visoreds to keep their swords on them. Yet ever since ichigo had begun his training, they had. It felt, better that way.  
"Grim-san where are you going?" Mashiro asked, looking at the teen boy with curious eyes. Grim stayed silent for a moment, everybody now looking at him, unsure of what his intentions are.  
'If what she said is true, then Alexandria and I were going to dinner tonight. It'd be like what the humans call a date.' Grim thought, looking over his shoulder, eyes deadly. "I'm going to find her. She'll get sick if she stays out in that rain for too long."

Shinji lept to his feet. "We're going with you." Grim stopped on the third stair. Lisa looked at him with disgust. "Alex-chan is our comrade too ya know." The others all got to their feet, and they began to walk towards Grim.  
"Just stay out of my way. he muttered, moving quicker down the stairs. Once inside the training area, he took off at lightening speed. This room was nearly a mile across. If the others stayed in a group, it would take no longer than an hour to find her. After all, they knew everything about this room, right?

Hiyori grunted when they stepped onto the sand. "It's still raining." she muttered. Mashiro began to dance in the rain.  
"Alex-chan! Come out!" she called, spinning and going her own way. Kensei and Love both looked indifferent and went after her. Hiyori, Shinji, Lisa, and Hachi all stood at the opening still.  
"We should start looking for Alex-chan." Hachi said, walking forward. Lisa stayed by his side, looking like an ant compared to him. Hiyori and Shinji groaned, and began to walk straight ahead, Shinji making sarcastic comments and trying to lighten up the mood.

Grim stopped, his clothes whipping around him as he stood on top of the highest pillar in the area. He could see exactly where the other Visored were, but there was no sign of Alex. 'Damn it...Why are girls so hard to find?' he thought, running a hand through his white hair, forcing his blue bangs on top of his head. He looked around, staying tall despite the strong winds. 'Where could she be?' Below, there was q ucik movement. His eyes moved to see what it was, and noticed Kensei's bright white hair. "Kensei!" he yelled, screaming through the wind. The man froze and looked around. 'I have to do everything around here.' Grim thought before yelling again. "Get your ass up here!" Kensei looked up and saw the small figure of a person. He jumped, making his way expertly to the top and stopping about a foot away from Grim. "Does that look right to you?" he asked, pointing to a pillar across the room. Kensei looked for a moment before shrugging.

"How should I know? I'm not an expert on t-" he was cut off as Grim's hands gripped his neck. "Then go get the others and bring them here. Now." Kensei nodded and disapeared, grabbing Mashiro and Love first. They returned, and Grim asked again. Everyone was silent.  
"Well?" he asked, prodding them.  
"It looks like it collapsed in." Mashiro said, blinking her wide eyes. Grim snapped his head back to the place. He lept off, jumping to the nearest pillar and making his way over to it. "Did I do something wrong?"  
"No Mashiro, he's just stressed out again." Shinji said, leaping after him. Grim landed on top of the rubble, looking at the giant hole in front of him. As each of his comrades landed around him, the tension grew. His trained eyes scanned the area, looking for any sign that Alex was here. "Grim-san, I don't think she's here." Shinji said, but Grim ignored him, crouching down to trace the rough edge. When he looked at his fingers, there was a trace of blood. "Did you cut ya finger there Grim-san?" Grim shoved Shinji backwards, making him fall to the ground. Hiyori and Kensei cringed.

Grim stood up, looking down the hole again, looking for any signs of movement. "Alexandria was here." Hiyori looked at him like he was stupid.  
"No shit Sherlock!"Grim didn't react to him, but waited until Shinji made his way back up the pillar.  
"We're going down. I don't know how deep it is, but if it ends at the ground where this pillar begins, then the chances of Alex being alive, but injured, are high." Grim said, turning his back on the hole.  
"And if its not? What if its deeper?" Lisa asked, arms crossed and looking down the role, pulling a rope off her hip.

"Then the chances get slimmer with each foot the drop lengthens." The group was utterly silent, hesitating to go. Lisa dropped the rope down the hole.  
"It's deeper than 100 feet. This pillar is only about 75 feet tall, Grim-san." she said, pulling her rope back up and sticking it on her hip once more. Grim narrowed his eyes before stepping on the edge of the gap, half of his feet hanging over the edge.  
"I'm going to save Alexandria, wether she is alive or not." he said, and looked at Shinji. "You would do the same for Hiyori." Shinji looked down, knowing it was true.  
"We'll come with you, Grim-san. If it means saving a comrade, after all, we are a dying breed." Grim turned his head back down to the hole, his famous grin appearing on his lips.

"Then lets go."


	8. Loki

The ground was cold and wet, but that didn't seem to faze Grim. He waited for the others to land around him, which he instantly regret. "AH! Its so dirty down here!" Mashiro whined, lightly jumping from toe to toe to keep from placing he whole foot down. Grim kept his temper under control. This wasn't supposed to be about he thought things should be run. No. This was about finding Alex. Alive.

"Listen." he began, turning to face the others. They all shut up and looked at him, fear in their eyes. "We know for a fact Alex is somewhere down here. We also know that this place can't be any bigger than the training room. However, we don't know what else is down here, or where Alex ran off to." Hiyori looked over at Lisa, who was staring right at Grim's face. Mashiro was next to Kensei, holding his arm as she looked around. Shinji moved next to her, looking down with a somewhat grim face. What was going on.  
"Grim-san, if I may put something out there." Hachi spoke up, his large frame taking up a great deal of space in the enclosed area. "You found her blood up above right? That would mean she is bleeding. Especially if it was still there by the time we arrived." Grim narrowed his eyes, turning away. "We could follow the blood spots, right?"  
"You might not be as stupid as I thought, Hachi." Grim said, looking at the ground and walls. "The problem is, it is so dark down here that the blood will match color with water." His blue eyes scanned the area. "Not to mention we have almost six different tunnels to search through."

Mashiro yelped, jumping up and keeping her right foot high in the air. "I stepped in something!" she screamed, freaking out.  
"Drama Queen." Lisa muttered. Love nodded, still wearing his sunglasses. Kensei grabbed her, lifting her up above his head.  
"Shut the hell up Mashiro!" he hissed, seeing Grim watching with an annoyed look on his face. Grim walked over, not sure what to expect her to have stepped in. Kensei held the girl still as he traced his index finger across the bottom of her white shoes. "Well, what is it?" Grim rubbed the substance on his pants while he crouched down, placing his right hand in something sticky.  
"She was here, and she wasn't alone." he said, standing up. There was a pool of blood sitting on the ground, with a mark indicating which was Alex had been drug. Next to it though, was a foot print, one that Grim knew very well from his childhood. "We need to find her. And quickly." he said, running down the path in front of him.  
"Grim-san! Wait!" Shinji yelled, but his voice was drowned out by Grim's own thoughts, and the pattering of feet behind him.

_Alex sat on the deck, watching the ocean once again. It was dawn, and the other Visoreds hadn't yet waken. Grim was only half awake, but he made his way down the stairs. Surely there had to be some sort of coffee in this house. _

_While he searched the empty cupboards, the outside door slid open. He turned, not sure who was up. "Alexandria? What are you doing up?" he asked, to sleepy to torture her with the nickname he had given her. She hated it so much, but she had begun to grow used to it.  
"It's Alex you bastard." she said, sitting down at the bar, book in hand. "And I didn't sleep." Grim didn't reply. Yet as she had walked closer, he had begun to see the dark circles under her eyes. With her sitting only a foot and a half away, they were so prominent that it looked like she had black eyes.  
"If you don't sleep princess, then your not going to get this training done very quick." he said, grabbing a coffee mug he had finally found, and setting it on the island. Alex crossed her arms, looking out the window.  
"As if it would get done quick to begin with." she muttered, pointing out a fact. It was true, this training took a life time to complete. Even Shinji, a former captain of the thirteen protection squads, wasn't completely trained. There was always room for improvement. Alex's stomach tightened, and she moved her hands to it. At the same time, it growled. _

_"Hungry?" Alex didn't have the energy to glare at him. It had been nearly three days since she slept. _

_"No." she lied, looking down at her stomach. It growled again, and Grim raised an eyebrow, his signature grin on his face. "Maybe." he turned away, filling the cup with steaming hot water. _

_"I'll tell you what. You've been living off of those gas station food boxes right?" Grim started, pulling the cup out from under the water and turning the faucet off. "How about tomorrow night, you and I go out to dinner some choice." Alex couldn't believe what she had just heard. Grim was such a hard ass. There was no way he had just asked her, HER, on a date. With Ale's still silence, Grim cocked his head sideways. "Is that a no then?"_

_"No!" Alex said, eyes doubling in size and she looked up. "I mean, it sounds like...Fun." Grim kept this grin on his face. There was a light in her eyes that he hadn't seen since she was talking about the ocean. He drank the water, getting that awful morning dryness out of his mouth. _

_"Then it sounds like a plan." he said, setting the cup in the sink and walking off. Before he could reach the stairs, Alex was in front of him. 'She's definitely fast. There will be no problem teaching her to move to use binding spells.' he thought, looking at her with his grin half diminished. "What is it?"_

_"Thanks, Grim-san. Thanks alot." she said, slightly blushing. Grim stared for a moment, lost in the look on her face. He thought it was cute. He put a hand on her head, ruffling up her hair. The cute look vanished off her face in an instant as she grabbed his wrist, shoving it back at his body. _

_"Its Loki, by the way." he said, beginning p the stairs. _

_"Loki?" Alex asked, standing at the bottom._

_"Yeah. Grim is just a nickname I've had since I was little. My name is Loki." Then he disappeared back into his room of solitude. _

Grim stopped, curling his fingers into fists. Why had that memory appeared? What did it mean? Hachi stood next to him, looking around. "I am going t put a shield around all of us. Everyone stay put!" he said, smiling with his pink mustache. Grim hadn't heard him, and was too busy looking around. They had somehow managed to find an underground waterfall. It went straight down into a large hole, not a lake or river. He scanned it, looking at the wall behind it. There were ivy vines everywhere, and small trees. The ceiling had grown nearly two feet higher, giving Hachi a lot more room to stand. It was moist, of course, but warm. It was as if they were on an island. As Hachi's shield reached Grim, a scream pierced the air. It was filled with immense pain, and sorrow. Grim's eyes flickered open to their full size.

"Alexandria!" he called, leaping once again away from his comrades. Hachi stopped the shield, keeping just him and the original Visoreds inside it. Shinji was looking, knowing he would do the exact same thing had he had a better relationship with the girl. Hiyori suddenly lept after Grim.

"Hold on Alex!" she yelled.

'Of course, the two that are crazy violent are the ones that seem to have a friendship.' Shinji thought, leaping after the blonde.


	9. Goodbye Brother

Alex coughed, her insides burning with pain. She couldn't see out of one eye, and the other was swollen too badly to even try to open anymore. There were footsteps all around, the only thing leaving her to believe it wasn't over yet. "Darling, I can't believe you have become strong enough to endure this." her mothers voice said softly into her ear. Her warm breathe was a contrast against the chilly air. "Yet, it seems you've come to your breaking point." Alex could feel her right eyes becoming less swolen as the seconds flew by. It was magical, this new sense of power. "How has that boy treated you? What was his name again? Grim?" Alex held back a quick snap. That was not his name.  
"Yeah, little Loki. It's been years since I've seen my little brother!" another man's voice called, he was somewhere in front of her. Alex opened her eyes to see him again, walking towards her. He had a sword just like the people she had been living with. Yet, there was something different about him. He had a jaw bone lining one half of his face, and hair almost exactly like Grim's, only all blue. His eyes were colder too. They shared the same grin. "If he's a good man he'll be looking for you, Alex." he said, pushing her head up with the tips of his fingers. Her mom laughed.

"I don't believe he's changed a bit! After all Grimmjow, he is related to you." The man lost his grin and turned to Alex's mom, stalking forward. He did not like being talked to like that. He shoved her against a wall, gripping her neck. She was like him. A former Espada, she easily equaled his strength. And that tiny girl over there, sitting chained up to the ground, beaten, bloody, and broken, was her daughter. "Now now. Let's not get in over out heads." the mother said, pushing him back. His hand released her neck, and he turned lightly on his feet. He looked once again at the girl, who was breathing, her healing abilities kicking in as her eyes flickered open, no longer swollen. She struggled to lift her head, staring at him with pain clear on her face. "Alexandria, will you join us yet? Leave those people and be trained as a Arrancar!" he mom said, lifting her arms up and looking around. "Join me, YOUR mother! Join Grimmjow! Join us all! You could be one of the most powerful people alive!" Alex continued to watch her mother, but was unaware of it. There was this feeling that was beginning to get stronger. It felt weird to her, alien. A few moments later, Grimmjow's eyes widened to the size of dinner plates.

"All of them?" he asked, grabbing a chair and holding it above Alex's head. She watched as a portion of the wall across from her broke free, cracking to hundreds of pieces. Her mother, spun, pulling out her own sword and standing protectively in front of her daughter. Grimmjow stood, not holding a weapon. His eyes wandered over the people in front of him. He could see them all. Shinji, Hiyori, Love, Lisa, Kensei, Mashiro, Hachi, and of course, his little brother. What caught him off guard was the fact that his brother was in front, leading them. "Little Loki!" he said with his cocky grin. Grim had lost his, and looked around, standing still, sword in hand but pointing down. "How nice of you to join me!" Grim felt his heart stop as he looked at Alex, sitting below his older brother, blood dried to her face, sticking her hair to her forehead and making it impossible for her to move. Chains were digging into her wrists as they held her ot the ground. Grimmjow noticed his glare, and looked down at his prisoner. "This thing? This girl can't possibly be what you came here for!" he said, acting surprised. Grim didn't by the act, and took a step forward.

Grimmjow was one step ahead of him though, slamming the chair into Alex's head, making her scream in pain, and dropping forward, a new crack in her head. "You bastard!" Hiyori hissed, unsheathing her own sword and preparing to fight. Alex's mother appeared in front of her, and Shinji was quick to act. This was no longer a recon mission. This could stop the war that was to take place in winter. Grimmjow launched himself at hislittle brother, sword no in his hand and only an inch from his siblings neck. Grim looked away, seeing that Shinji and Hiyori were dealing with Alex's mother. That wouldn't be enough. That woman was stronger than Coyote Stark, the top Espada. Love and Lisa joined in the fight while Hachi worked on holding their personal shield together. Kensei and Mashiro. Grimmjow jumped backwards, bring his sword down across Kensei's back. He yelled out several curses, and launched himself at the blue-haired Grim Mashiro got out of the way, pulling her mask on. Grimmjow had lost it. He hadn't wanted this mission, but he had no problem with spilling blood. Getting rid of these Visoreds would only make matters easier later on.

Alex's mom looked over her shoulder and saw that her comrade had changed. "My turn!" she yelled, shoving the Visords off of her and transforming into a butterfly like creature. Alex slowly regained consciousness, looking at the events unfolding before her. Everything was a high pitch noise, and everyone was yelling something to their partner. Yet, she was doing nothing more than taking up a bloody space on the ground. Everything began to speed up, and her hearing came back. It was awful. Mashiro was crying as Kensei lept at her mother, Shinji and Love at his side. Hiyori was pulling on her mask. To her left, Grim was fighting Grimmjow. Grim had a mask on, and his sword was doing miraculous things. Just as Grimmjow's released form was a panther, Grim's was a lion. It had ot be a family trait, being felines. Alex looked over again at her mom, seeing that she was wearing giant butterfly wings and wielding a sword at least her height.

'Mom...You always said butterflies were healers...Or bringers of health...You lied.' she thought, forcing herself up onto her hands and knees. She could feel some sort of weird strength building inside of her. The sight of all of her comrades fighting her own mother. The fact that she was being completely useless. The fact that they had all come to help save . All the strength she could feel inside of her, suddenly burst out. It was whipping around, white flames that were licking her body. It didn't hurt. It felt nice. The chains ripped out of the ground, but stayed formed to her wrists. Grimmjow and Grim didn't dare to look away from their fight to see what was happening. Alex's mother, however, looked away instantly.

"My baby! She finally did it! Oh she figured out how to use her reiatsu!" she wailed, holding her face happily. Alex looked at her mom, and then felt something slick yet sticky in her hands. To her own surprise, the chain was wrapping around her palms, joining together at the end. It was a black hilt. The hilt of a sword. She bilnked, and then the white flames traced themselves into a skinny, straight sword with a blunt, flat tip. The flames were gone, but she could still feel the strength. Her mom was attacked from the side, and she turned her attention back to the large group before her. Alex collapsed, the strength suddenly diminished from her body. Her hands let go of the sword, letting it fall noisily to the rocky ground. Everything was slow again. She had been of no help.

"ALEXANDRIA!" Grim yelled, watching as she fell once more. 'She's lost too much blood. IF she had been in better condition she could've fought.' he thought, swinging his own sword upwards as his lion mask fell into his hands. Grimmjow paused for a moment before jumping, not caring that his brother had weakened. He was going to win. Right before his hand could penetrate Grim's body, Grim grabbed his wrist, swinging him around with incredible strength, then using Flash Step to get above his older brother. "I'm sorry, Grimmjow. Its my turn to win." he said before bringing the sword down.


	10. Done

"Alex-chan! Alex-chan!" Mashiro repeated her name over and over again as Lisa and Hiyori set her down on the ground in the rain. The water felt nice, cold against her hot skin, moistening the dried blood. She couldn't find the strength to speak, but had so much to say. "Alex-chan!" Mashiro began again. Lisa and Hiyori stood by the hole, leaving Mashiro to watch her.  
'How kind, leave me with the annoying one.' Alex thought, looking at how clean the green-haired girl was. How was it even possible for her to be so clean? Hiyori and Lisa were dirty, but hadn't once been touched by her mom. Mashiro continued to say her name, looking like she was going to cry. "Mashiro..." she said quietly. Lisa and Hiyori snapped their heads over and Alex forced her right arm under her, propping her up just enough to look around. "Shut up." Lisa relaxed a little. Alex wasn't hurt enough to not be a brat. Mashiro smiled wider than she already was and laughed before continuing on with Alex's name. Alex felt her entire left side throbbing. That one hit that had slammed her into the wall had finished her off, she had been sure of it. Yet, here she was, being protected by her three female friends.

_Alex got to her feet, trying again to help. "What are you doing Alexandria?" her mom had asked, quick to get in front of her. She was facing her, sword still in hand. "You are in no shape to fight!" Alex lifted her head to look at her. "So?" she asked,_ _lifting her own sword up and pressing the tip against her moms side. "Neither are you." as she thrust the sword into her mother's side, the woman moved a swift hand, throwing her backwards against the wall with bone crushing strength. Alex couldn't move. Her breath knocked out of her, she could hardly find the strength to keep her eyes open  
"Do not ever speak to me like that again!" her mom hissed before taking the sword from her side as if it was nothing. Alex watched as she turned to see Grimmjow laying lifeless on the ground. Grim was nowhere to be seen. "Grimmjow! Get up!" she howled, hovering over him. When the man didn't do so much as twitch, she began to order him with more stress.  
"Now!" Grim's voice echoed, and Kensei and Shinji lept at her mom, tackling her to the ground as Grim fell from the high ceiling. "Lisa! Hiyori! Get her out of here!" Shinji said, struggling to get the words out as he used all of his strength to hold the woman down. _

That was how she had gotten here. Had the others not been there, her mother would've either ordered Grimmjow to kill her, or done it herself. Four bodies touched ground, instantly collapsing. Kensei, Love, Hachi, and Rose all were bloody, and beaten. Alex's eyes widened, blinking quickly as she took in the sight. Mashiro instantly left her side, dragging Kensei away and flipping him over onto his stomach. There was a large gash across his back, deep. Love had a scratch on his face, Hachi seemed untouched minus the cuts and bruises on his arms. Rose's blonde hair was sticking to his sharp face, and was sliced to no end. Alex tried to get up, but only coughed, a small amount of blood coming out with the air. Hiyori and Lisa exchanged glances before each taking one man, and disappearing. It took them a minute before returning, grabbing another one and leaving Alex alone once more. mashrio screamed at Hiyori as the small girl had grabbed Kensei, and chased after her.

Alex layed back, closing her eyes and letting her face get drenched in the rain. This was HER weather. The weather she hoped and prayed for when she was little. A shuffling sound in front of her, made her curiosity peek, and she propped herself up once more. A pale hand was able to be see on the edge of the rocks. 'What a pain! But I can't just let them hand there.' she thought, sitting all the way up, then flopping over so she could crawl. Tears began to fill her eyes once again as her broken body screamed for an end. At the edge of the rocks, she grabbed the wrist of whoever it was. Knowing half her body was of no use, she began to dig her right foot in to the ground, pulling herself and the excess weight with one leg. Yellow hair began to appear, and another hand made its way to the surface. Alex released Shinji's wrist, letting him pull himself up the rest of the way.

Shinji rolled onto his back, beaten the worst out of everyone Alex had seen so far. Love jumped up, in just as bad of shape as Shinji, but somehow still able to stand. "A-Alex..." Shinji said, hurting himself to speak. "Thank ya."  
"Of course Shinji." Alex said with a half smile. There was a rubbling sound below them, and rocks began to drop into the hole. 'Grim!' Alex thought, staying propped up now as Love and Shinji got away from the entrance. They watched as the rocks turned to boulders. They couldn't save anyone down there now, there was no way. The rubbling stopped after a few minutes, and the rocks began to slowly stop piling in. Alex watched. There was no way Grim would go down like that! No way!

Hiyori and Lisa arrived again, each grabbing Love and Shinji. "Alex-chan we'll..." Lisa looked where the girl was. Her face grew dim. "We'll be right back for you." They left her again, disappearing with the men. Alex couldn't look away from the nearly filled hole. Something made her continue to watch it. After a moment, a rock shifted over, and a hand popped up.  
"Grim!" Alex said, struggling to sit up as her body moved quickly. Another hand pushed up, and they lifted a beaten and battered body onto the surface. Grim was breathing heavy, and his skin was bloody and covered in dirt. He lifted himself to his feet only to see Alex struggling still to ge tot her own, her left leg bent backwards. "Your alive!" she said, watching him. It was like watching a toddler tryign to walk towards its parent.

Grim rushed to her, wrapping his arms around her broken frame. "O...Ow..." she choked out, and he whipped her into his arms, standing up and moving in leaps and bounds. "Loki...I'm sorry." Grim stopped, looking at her."I got all of you hurt...You could've left me there to di...'  
"No!" he said, a sudden urgentness to his voice. "I mean...Well, I said I'd take you to dinner. I won't go back on my word." Alex smiled, closing her eyes and relaxing a bit. Grim walked smoothly into the house, and up the stairs, laying her on his bed. "You can't rest on a couch. You can have my bed until you get better."  
"And you? Where will you rest?" Mashiro and the other two girls were making their way up the stairs with their medical stuff.  
"The couch. I'm not as beaten up as you." he said, moving a piece of hair from her face before turning and leaving, being chased down by Mashiro. Alex turned her head so she was looking at the ceiling, and smile on her lips as she closed her eyes.


	11. Sister Sister

**NOTES: This is it! The end! Hmm... What to do next?**

Waves crashed roughly against the boulders blocking the ocean from the deck. It was summer now, and Alex was relaxed. The wind blew her hair back as she sat on the rocks, enjoying the sun. For the first time since she was three, Alex could actually say she was happy. Ever since the day she fell through that hole, life got amazing. Well, besides her being bed ridden for a few weeks. It was a paradise! The only annoyance was Mashiro on a sugar high, and even that wasn't bad.

Alex closed her eyes, smelling the air. 'The only thing that could make this better is if I was back in America.' she thought, leaning backwards. 'I miss the sand.' _It wasn't sunny, but wasn't raining. Overcast. Just like any other day up in the Pacific Northwest. There were strong winds, and at most it was 40 degrees out._ 'Amazing.' _Logs were scattered across the beach, acting as natural benches. There was gravel on the highest half of the sandy area, hurting little kids feet. The water was freezing, but out in it, a little girl splashed around. A mother ran with her, lifting her up into the air and back down. The two looked so happy. _

The door opening made Alex sit up. She turned around, still watching the scene in her head. "Alex-chan are you ready?" Mashiro asked, wearing modern day clothing to fit in with the humans.  
"Yeah. I'll be in the car in a minute." the teen answered, turning back to the ocean. The smile faded away from her face as she neared the end of the scene. _A man walked up, taking the mother away from the child. The little girl watched as her mom walked away, leaving her for the strange guy. The little girl ran after her mother only to have a hand hit her face, slamming her into the ground. The girl didn't move._ The door opened again, and Grim slid out, a hoodie over his shoulder for Alex.

"Shinji's going to leave without you." he said, walking to the edge of the deck. Alex didn't respond. " I figured you would want to go for this retrieval." the boy teased, watching as Alex stood up and turned around.  
"Shut up." she said, letting him help her over the railing. She took the coat from his hand and slid it on. The two began to walk towards the door, side by side.  
"MOM!" a child's voice screamed. Alex froze, spinning around and looking wide eyed at the water. Very faintly, she could see the small girl, soaking wet, trying to pull herself up onto the slippery rocks. Grim continued walking, stopping a few steps ahead and looking at her. Alex watched, blinking wildly as she turned around.

"You ok?" Grim asked, looking at Alex with concern. A small smile crossed Alex's lips as she caught up to her fiance.  
"Yeah. I just thought I heard something." she said with a true sense of happiness. 'That will never be me again.' Grim entwined their fingers together, each one grabbing their own sword and continuing to the cars.  
"About time love birds!" Hiyori said, sitting on the hood of Shinji's Honda.  
"Now, let's go get your sister." Shinji said with a grin, closing his door.


End file.
